Regarding Otherwhere

"A photograph is a 2 dimensional representation of a reality with a 3 dimensional meaning". - Peter McKenzie

This pertinent quote suggests that within the construction of a photograph and its stencilling of the raw materials of the world are possibilities for the deconstruction of one's own sense of this world, embracing the inner critic to claim individualistic perceptions of another kind of world. With the construction of visual messages, lies social commentary for consideration from others, to form and see new realities, that otherwise would go unnoticed. Implicitly one should always ask: What happened before these photographs were made and what happened afterwards? What lies behind these photographs? What made visible, speaks about the invisible?

The word 'otherwhere' encompasses these sentiments and implies the consideration of the space between, reflecting on other ways of thinking about communities and practices.

This exhibition is the product of a six day photography workshop hosted by the KZNSA Durban Centre for Photography (DCP), facilitated by Peter McKenzie, Liza du Plessis, Shirin Motala and Paulo Menezes. Participants were guided through numerous group discussions and collective activities to explore their own subjectivity and use their current cultural, social and political identities as mirrors and windows for seeing, looking and imagining people and spaces, and to build conceptual frameworks for 'how' and 'why' they would photograph on location. These series of photographs were made in a 5 hour walk in the Warwick Triangle vicinity. The first 2 hours were spent walking in and around this area without a camera, meeting pertinent figures who spoke about the history of the area and the difficulties of sustaining a living. Participants were then allowed 3 hours to make photographs around their respective concepts. From a selection of 24 photographs, a group orientated critique brought down the selection to 6. These series of photographs are about many moments in the narrative of time as seen through diverse lenses of living in and being African, curated by a collective.